Palo Santo Marron

A huge beer from Dogfish Head now and you’ve guessed it, this one is another that I received as a gift from a family member returning from the east coast of the United States last year; it is literally the only way to get a hold of Dogfish Head beers in the UK. Coming in at 12% abv., Palo Santo Marron takes its name from the Paraguayan Palo Santo wood that the brewing vessels are made of and that the beer is aged in. Translating as ‘holy tree’, the wood is used in wine making in South America and now it’s used in North American beer brewing as well. This one will be my seventh Dogfish beer and I’m hopefully it’ll rate among some of the truly excellent beers that I’ve tried from them as it’s the last of their beers that I have left for the time being.

Appearance (4/5): Dark brown in colour with some parts looking even darker than that, there is a thin looking head that is tan brown in colour as well and holds surprisingly well consider the strength of the beer, there is little movement at all from it. The beer is an opaque one and there is some touches of lacing on the sides of the glass as well.Aroma (8/10): Faint hops and some stronger malts coming through with some toasted notes as well. The beer is slightly sweet in parts with some faint caramel and a little chocolate coming through before some oak and vanilla notes see things out, there is a touch of alcohol as well.Taste (8/10): Coffee and dark chocolate kick things off with some nice malts and roasted flavours coming through soon after. The beer was again slightly sweet with some vanilla making itself known alongside a little grain and alcohol. The oak and wood from the nose is present in the taste as well with a slightly bitter flavour coming through as well.Palate (4/5): Smooth with a nice warming feel thanks to the big alcohol content of this one. The beer has a medium body with light carbonation and seemed relatively easy to drink. There was some sweetness, particularly towards the end, and a little bit of bitterness as well.

Overall (17/20): A very nice beer from Dogfish Head once again, this one had an enjoyable taste to it and went down a lot easier than I had imagined going in. The nose could have been a little more pronounced with some notes proving a little difficult to detect but once given some time to open up things started to be a little more noticeable. The alcohol was fairly well hidden with only small amount coming through and the sweetness in the taste was very nice. A great beer overall and definitely one that I’d like to try again, hopefully I can get my hands on another bottle somehow.

Brewed In: Milton, Delaware, United States of AmericaBrewery: Dogfish Head BreweryFirst Brewed: 2006Type: American Brown/Strong AleAbv: 12.0%Serving: Bottle (355ml)Purchased: Virginia, United States of AmericaPrice: Gift